Two Contact Sheets from a 1963 John Updike Photo Shoot, printing 60 different photographs of John Updike

[Crane Beach, near Ipswich]: (Ivan Massar from Black Star), 1963. Unbound. Fine. Two vintage gelatin silver contact sheets of John Updike photographs, each measuring 8 5/8 by 11 inches. Rubberstamped on blank verso: "Credit: Ivan Massar from Black Star" and with pencil notation stating: "John Updike" and with printed notation in red ink at lower edge: "File: Updike, John" in an unknown hand. A few of the photographic images on this contact sheet were over-exposed where the photographer was experimenting with bright background lighting in an attempt to create a strong profile of Updike standing in foreground, else fine. A close variant image from this photo shoot was published on the rear flap of the dust jacket for the first edition of John Updike's novel *The Centaur* in 1963.

The contact sheet depicts John Updike, dressed in a dark sport coat and light pants, standing outdoors, in various rural settings in 60 different poses, all in portrait mode. Some of the images have slight differences in background or focus, reflecting the photographers experimentation with a particular pose for the photo shoot; in some instances the portraits have poor focus or lighting. An anecdotal discussion of photographs from this photo shoot states that the photographs were taken near Crane Beach, in Ipswich, Massachusetts. Updike lived in Ipswich from 1957 until 1974.

Massar, an American photographer and photojournalist, was born in Warren Ohio. He studied at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena is the author of two books: *The Illustrated World of Thoreau* (1974) and *Take up the Song* (1986). After joining the navy in 1942, and serving three years, he became a conscientious objector and a pacifist. He pursued a career in photojournalism, working with the photo agency Black Star, documenting the Civil Rights Movement, including the March on Washington, the Vietnam War, and other historical events. He also photographed various authors (Robert Frost and John Updike), artists (Andrew Wyeth) et al.